New Delhi: Three days after 49 eminent personalities wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, expressing concern over incidents of lynching and the alleged weaponisation of the slogan “Jai Shri Ram”, 62 others have hit back, accusing them of “selective outrage, false narratives and a clear political bias” in an open letter.
The authors of this new letter include Censor Board of Film Certification (CBFC) chief Prasoon Joshi, Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut, filmmakers Madhur Bhandarkar and Vivek Agnihotri, and classical dancer and Rajya Sabha member Sonal Mansingh.
“An open letter which has been published on July 23 2019, and addressed to Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has astonished us. Forty nine self-styled ‘guardians’ and conscience keepers’ of the nation… have expressed selective concern and demonstrated a clear political bias and motive,” the letter read.
“To us, the undersigned, this document of selective outrage comes across as an attempt to foist a FALSE NARRATIVE… to negatively portray Prime Minister Modi’s untiring efforts. The signatories of the ‘open letter’ have, in the past, kept silent when tribals and the marginalised have become victims of Naxal terror, they have kept silent when separatists have issued dictates to burn schools in Kashmir, they have kept silent when the demand for dismembering India were made…” the letter continued.
In a separate statement, Ranaut also declared “we are part of a major shift” and warned those who had no respect for democracy.
“We are a part of a major shift, things are changing for betterment of the nation and few people are rattled by this. Common people have chosen their leaders, ones who disregard people’s will are the ones who have no respect or consideration for democracy,” she was quoted by news agency ANI.
The signatories to the new letter also attacked the 49 for criticising the government, while arguing that “… in fact under the Modi regime we see maximum liberty to differ, to criticise and to abuse the government and dispensation in power – the spirit of dissent has never been stronger”.
On Tuesday, 49 people, including award-winning filmmakers Aparna Sen and Mani Ratnam, and historian Ramachandra Guha, wrote to the Prime Minister, urging him to intervene as the numbers of hate crime and atrocities against minority communities spike.
“Dear Prime Minister… The lynching of Muslims, Dalits and other minorities must be stopped immediately… It is not about party or politics. Our letter has no political colour. We just want him (PM Modi) to intervene. You have criticised such lynchings in parliament Mr Prime Minister, but that is not enough… We strongly feel that such offences should be declared non-bailable…” the earlier letter said.
“Human lynching is our concern. Our objection is against lynchings be it against Muslims or Hindus,” Sen said at a press conference on Wednesday, highlighting that National Crime Records Bureau reports showed there were 840 cases of atrocities against Dalits in 2016.
In June the Prime Minister condemned, in parliament the lynching of Tabrez Ansari, 24, in Jharkhand, and said all such incidents should be treated in the same manner.
However, Tabrez Ansari’s death was not the last instance of hate crime this year. According to factchecker.in, at least eight more have been reported since, including an incident in Assam’s Barpeta district where four people thrashed three Muslim youths and forced them to chant “Jai Shri Ram”.
Perhaps anticipating the response to their letter, the 49 signatories also said “criticising the ruling party does not imply criticising the nation”.
“We hope our suggestions will be taken in the spirit that they are meant – as Indians genuinely concerned with, and anxious about, the fate of our nation,” their letter said.
Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee supported the citizens’ letter and said they were “quite right”.
Actor Swara Bhasker, backed the letter written by the 49, stating “mob lynching had become an epidemic in the country”. Kaushik Sen, one of the 49 signatories, claimed to have received death threats earlier this week and said he had alerted the others of the incident. Police investigations into the alleged threat are ongoing.
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